Apparatus for displaying clothing has long been in use, particularly in the commercial retail clothing business. The use of some form or mannequin upon which sales personnel displayed the current fashions for sale has been a staple of the retail clothing stores for years. Other types of clothing displays have been used in the home, generally some sort of frame for adults to drape pants or hang a suit from. There have been some partial forms or mannequins that have a human shape which uses clothes hangers upon which to display clothing (U.S. Pat. No. 4,739,911). But generally the past inventions have been three-dimensional models that had to be dressed in clothing, or two-dimensional partially humanlike shapes that have been missing the lower portion of the body or certain appendages. Furthermore, none have been specifically aimed at giving children a form close to their size upon which they could assemble and display their own clothing.
There have also been inventions aimed at teaching children how to fold clothes (U.S. Pat. No. 5,282,749), how to manipulate the various fasteners on clothing (U.S. Pat. No. 4,276,031), and even to encourage children to return clothing to hangers (U.S. Pat. No. 4,563,373). Additionally, previous inventions have included dolls used to teach children counting, colors, textures and to develop and improve manual dexterity (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,276,031 and 4,637,798); some of these dolls provided detailed methods for teaching children how to dress themselves. However, there have not been any known inventions that allow the child to assemble his or her own clothing on a model approximating their size, allowing for the advanced selection and organization of clothing, and employing the child's natural curiosity in helping the child learn, alone or with parental guidance, how to choose and organize the appropriate clothing well prior to the time the clothing is actually needed.